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INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER * A thrilling novel of the senses and a coming-of-age tale, following a small-town girl into the electrifying world of New York City and the education of a lifetime at one of the most exclusive restaurants in Manhattan. Perfect for readers of Kitchen Confidential and Blood, Bones and Butter.

Twenty-two, and knowing no one, Tess leaves home to begin her adult life in New York City. Thus begins a year that is both enchanting and punishing, in a low-level job at “the best restaurant in New York City.” Grueling hours and a steep culinary learning curve awaken her to the beauty of oysters, the finest Champagnes, the appellations of Burgundy. At the same time, she opens herself to friendships—and love—set against the backdrop of dive bars and late nights. As her appetites sharpen—for food and wine, but also for knowledge, experience, and belonging—Tess is drawn into a darkly alluring love triangle that will prove to be her most exhilarating and painful lesson of all.

Stephanie Danler deftly conjures the nonstop and purely adrenalized world of the restaurant—conversations interrupted, phrases overheard, and suggestions below the surface. Evoking the infinite possibility of being young in New York with heart-stopping accuracy, Sweetbitter is ultimately about the power of what remains after disillusionment, and the wisdom that comes from experience, sweet and bitter.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Brilliantly written… Sweetbitter is the Kitchen Confidential of our time.”—Gabrielle Hamilton, author of Blood, Bones & Butter and Prune, New York Times Book Review

“Danler’s sexy, astute debut is really a love story about the addictive pull of restaurant life… Anyone who’s ever tied on an apron will think, “Finally, someone wrote a book about us.” And nailed it.”—People (book of the week)

“An unpretentious, truth-dealing novel… about hunger of every variety. Ms. Danler is a sensitive observer… and gifted commenter on many things. Sweetbitter is going to make a lot of people hungry.”—Dwight Garner, New York Times

“… perfectly captures the raw possibility of a young woman’s first year in New York, opening up to a whole new world of wine, food, love and heartbreak.”—Mackenzie Dawson, New York Post

"...a raw, shucked, pungent, wild love story."—Marie Claire

"Danler... quickly draws you into the sparkling surfaces and the shadowy underbelly of the city... [Tess's] insatiable hunger for tactile, sensual satisfaction dares you to tag along. The journey is high-minded and dirty, beastly and bountiful."—Elle“Danler’s ravishing debut is like inhabiting the heady after-midnight hours of a city drunk on its own charms… [her] descriptions of food and drink go beyond mouth-watering, verging on orgasmic… a first novel [that] tantalizes, seduces, satisfies.”—Leigh Haber, O Magazine

Top customer reviews

I wanted to like this book, but I just couldn't, unfortunately. From the start, the main character arrives in NYC, moves directly into an affordable apartment being rented by a friend of a friend, and walks into the first restaurant someone suggests (one of the best in NYC) and receives a job offer as a result. I know that the plot, set in said restaurant, had to be established, but it was just too easy.

But mostly, the tension in the book is all contrived. The main character is young and naive, stays up too late, drinks too much, does too many drugs, and sleeps with the wrong men. And yet, this is presented as a HUGE LIFE CHANGING CRISIS instead of most people's experience at age 22. She falls in with two of her coworkers, one a slightly jaded, slightly mysterious older woman (who is actually kind of pitiable, not really having a life outside of the restaurant where she's worked for 15 years - but who the narrator comes to obsess over) who earnestly does things like call her "little one." The other is a slightly mysterious bartender who doesn't seem to have any discernible personality whatsoever outside of taking her for granted - and yet is the LOVE OF HER LIFE. The two coworkers she's obsessed with have an ambiguous and close relationship, and you know from the start that she's going to lose as she can never be as important to them as they are to each other.

Mostly the book is just extremely overwrought. I imagine it would have some appeal to people who themselves were/are servers, but there's both too much book (at 350 pages) and yet not enough plot to be truly enjoyable.

The story line drags way too long in the middle. Overly indulgent descriptions of food, wine, and expertise of being a server are almost pompous become unnecessary after a while causing this reader to become board and confused as to where the story is going. Even the end left a bit to be desired but I suppose I appreciated it being a little open ended because honestly I didn't care much for the main character.

I am a foodie and thought this might be a good glimpse of the behind the scenes life at a high end NY restaurant. The novel part got in the way- characters were generally unlikable. I know a bit about the life of a restaurant worker and that aspect was well represented. Its just that the characters all had depressing lives. No redeeming end.

I loved this book, really loved it, but it isn't for everybody. Unfortunately, there are many negative reviews by readers who never should have read or tried to read this book, and it is the fault of the publisher. In boldface on the Amazon page: "A thrilling novel of the senses...Perfect for readers of Kitchen Confidential and Blood, Bones and Butter." Ummm, no. This book is nothing at all like those books - if anything, it is more closely related to Salinger's Catcher in the Rye.

What this book is not:It is not an inside look into the secrets of Union Square Cafe, one of Manhattan's top restaurants. The protagonist isn't ever in the kitchen. Also, it is not a "small-town girl struggles with the big city but stays true to herself so she can conquer her career and get the dreamy guy" book. It is definitely not a beach read.

What this book is:An exceptionally well-written story of a smart but very troubled woman struggling to establish a life and make personal connections, and mostly failing. She comes of age the hard way, taking her lumps brought on by bad decisions and a toxic environment. She lacks the family support many take for granted, and her loneliness is expressed on almost every page. The pain and dysfunction are so intimately rendered, I would be shocked if the author didn't live much of it herself.

Some reviewers have criticized the lack of development of supporting characters, notably the love interest, Jake. This may be a valid critique, but I am going to argue that this may by intentional by the author. A central struggle in this book is the narrator's inability to form true, enduring interpersonal connections that extend beyond the moment, despite her desperation to do just that. The secondary characters are seen through the narrator's eyes, she never gets to see their hidden selves. The aren't well developed because they never let her in.

Some reviewers have also complained that there are no likable characters. If you need a hero protagonist who does always the right thing, this is not the book for you - this a grown-up book with realistic people, who (gasp!) make bad decisions. There are multiple accounts of drug use and sex, and if reading about that upsets you, then this won't be for you. But this is not a book about drugs or sex, and both appear realistically, not gratuitously.

Not every book is for every person. I loved this book, and will be thinking about it for a long time.

This book was an easy read. Some described it at Boring, but they may not have identified with the main character.

I have been Tess, a young ambitious woman who falls in with a late night crowd and has feelings for the wrong guy. A few days after I finished it I felt a bit weird, depressed, dejavu .This book does not have a happy or sad ending, it just kind of ends. I wish there were more of a conclusion.

I do not recommend this book. I read up to 40% of this book before I decided I just couldn't read anymore. Didn't care about the characters or what would happen to them. Very bored with the whole thing. If you want a very good book about working in a restaurant read Anthony Bordain's "Kitchen Confidential". A far superior book.

FUN. BREEZY TO READ. I HAVE TOTALLY FORGOTTEN THE BOOK, HOWEVER. NOT HEAVY DUTY WRITING OR STORY, BUT DEF A FUN READ THAT I WANTED TO READ IN ITS ENTIRETY. I'M INTERESTED IN FOOD; RESTAURANT BUSINESS; NYC, SO THE SUBJECT MATTER WAS OF INTEREST FROM THE START. THE CHARACTERS' RELATIONSHIPS ARE MODERN AND FAST PACED AND -AGAIN- IT'S A FUN READ. SHE'S A GOOD WRITER.